Saturday, June 29, 2013

JAMES BROWN

James Brown was born 1818 in Missouri. He is a brother to Phoebe (Holcomb) Pool born c. 1810 and Hannah (Holcomb) Skaggs born c. 1812. It is not known how many of the Holcomb siblings he connected to by blood. He is probably the son of Benjamin C. Brown and a Holcomb widow since his half-sister Phoebe Holcomb married in the home of Benjamin C. Brown in 1824 in Ste. Genieve County, Missouri.

On the 1830 census of Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri, Benajah or Benaja C. Brown's household is comprised of one male age ten to fifteen, one male age fifty to sixty, and one female age fifty to sixty. If James Brown is the male age ten to fifteen, his estimated birth year is between 1815 and 1820, which is in keeping with the profile of James Brown. The older female in the household is likely to be his mother, and her age of fifty to sixtey makes her old enough to be the mother of all of the Holcomb siblings. Living next door to this Brown family is that of the newlyweds James and Hannah Skaggs. Also listed on the same page is the household of Nathaniel Holcomb.

In 1838 James Brown was working as a striker for James Pool the blacksmith. He would be about 20 years old at this time. At this time period James Pool is the blacksmith for the Senecas.

In 1840, a James Brown is living in Elk Over Township of Newton County, Missouri. His household is sandwiched between that of Nathan Holcomb and James Skaggs. James Brown's household is comprised of one male under age 5, two males ages 20 - 30, one male age 60 - 70, and one female age 20 - 30. These ages are consistent with the James Brown that I have pinpointed on the 1850 census. Could the elder man, age 60 - 70, be Benajah C. Brown? If so, then his wife is probably desceased, and he may have died in Newton County, Missouri.

Later, James Brown was named in the Jackson County, Missouri lawsuit of Samuel H. Woodson vs. Heirs of James Pool, 1853 as the brother of Phoebe Pool. He was acting as trustee for her property and that of her children. In one the lawsuit documents dated September 1851 is the statement that James Brown had been absent from the state for several years and had neglected to perform his duty as trustee. The purpose of this statement was so that the minor Pool children could request that their older brother George Pool take over the duties as their trustee. Had he been gone for years or months? This lawsuit is Box 195, Folder 18, Location 16A 5/9 in the Missouri State Archives.

About Me

My favorite memories from childhood include visits to my grandparents in East Texas. At dusk we'd run around my grandparent's yard, catching fireflies and putting them in jelly jars. When darkness descended, we'd return to the porch. It was a special treat to sit in the porch swing. Inevitably, the adults would launch into family stories of Pink Kelley's brush with Sherman's troops, of Great Uncle Hood Brown's tragic death, and of the Kelley family's wagon trip to Texas, among many others. The stars on those nights were magical.

I began my genealogy research in the summer of 1975, less than a month after my high school graduation. When I married in 1983, I started researching my husband's family as well. I was fortunate to start this hobby as a youngster because it gave me an opportunity to correspond with researchers who are long gone; to ask questions of family members -although not enough, never enough; and travel a bit. The result is a lot of information. I've come to the realization that I will probably never be able to afford to publish, so this is my publication.

This blog contains a mixture of information on my husband's family and mine. I've expanded into a second blog called Flimsies and Frippery with the intention of focusing on quilts and dolls, but I have several historical research entries there with more planned, which is why I don't get more quilting done.

Ultimately, genealogy is my passion. This is where I plan to record family stories, research adventures and misadventures, and those serendipitous moments that happen out of the blue. You should be warned that I have a bad habit of going back and adding information and links to individual entries, so it is beneficial to check back often if there is a family of particular interest to you. If you wander in and discover that you are a cousin, please contact me.

Since many younger family members who are new to genealogy are starting to contact me about their ancestors, I've started adding family trees to help them see how everyone is connected. The trees are divided between my family and my husband's. You will find them below under the label's Family Trees - My Husband's Side and Family Trees - My Family's Side.

Porch Swing...

House built by my grandfather, Willie Sargent Chapman. The new owners put a porch swing in the spot where the original hung.